Lao People's Democratic Republic

National name: Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxon Lao

President: Choummaly Sayasone (2006)

Prime Minister: Bouasone Bouphavanh (2006)

Land area: 89,112 sq mi (230,800 sq km); total area: 91,429 sq mi (236,800 sq km)

Population (2006 est.): 6,368,481 (growth rate: 2.4%); birth rate: 35.5/1000; infant mortality rate: 83.3/1000; life expectancy: 55.5; density per sq mi: 71

Capital and largest city (2003 est.): Vientiane, 194,200

Monetary unit: New Kip

Languages: Lao (official), French, English, various ethnic languages

Ethnicity/race: Lao Loum (lowland) 68%, Lao Theung (upland) 22%, Lao Soung (highland) including the Hmong (“Meo”) and the Yao (Mien) 9%, ethnic Vietnamese/Chinese 1%

Religions: Buddhist 60%, animist and other 40% (including Christian 2%)

Literacy rate: 53% (2003 est.)

Economic summary: GDP/PPP (2005 est.): $11.92 billion; per capita $1,900. Real growth rate: 7.2%. Inflation: 9.4%. Unemployment: 5.7% (1997 est.). Arable land: 4%. Agriculture: sweet potatoes, vegetables, corn, coffee, sugarcane, tobacco, cotton, tea, peanuts, rice; water buffalo, pigs, cattle, poultry. Labor force: 2.8 million (2002 est.); agriculture 80%, industry and services 20% (1997 est.). Industries: copper, tin, and gypsum mining; timber, electric power, agricultural processing, construction, garments, tourism, cement. Natural resources: timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones. Exports: $379 million (2005 est.): garments, wood products, coffee, electricity, tin. Imports: $541 million f.o.b. (2005 est.): machinery and equipment, vehicles, fuel, consumer goods. Major trading partners: Thailand, Vietnam, France, Germany, UK, China, Singapore (2004) .

Communications: Telephones: main lines in use: 25,000 (1997); mobile cellular: 4,915 (1997). Radio broadcast stations: AM 12, FM 1, shortwave 4 (1998). Radios: 730,000 (1997). Television broadcast stations: 4 (1999). Televisions: 52,000 (1997). Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 1 (2000). Internet users: 10,000 (2002).

Transportation: Railways: 0 km. Highways: total: 21,716 km; paved: 9,664 km; unpaved: 12,052 km (1999 est.). Waterways: about 4,587 km, primarily Mekong and tributaries; 2,897 additional km are sectionally navigable by craft drawing less than 0.5 m. Ports and harbors: none. Airports: 51 (2002).

International disputes: demarcation of boundaries with Cambodia, Thailand, and Vietnam is nearing completion, but with Thailand several areas including Mekong River islets remain in dispute; ongoing disputes with Thailand and Vietnam over squatters.

 

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